IMDb > The Basketball Diaries (1995)
The Basketball Diaries
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The Basketball Diaries (1995) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.1/10   23,143 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers (WGA):
Jim Carroll (novel)
Bryan Goluboff (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Basketball Diaries on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
21 April 1995 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
The true story of the death of innocence and the birth of an artist more
Plot:
Film adaptation of street tough Jim Carroll's epistle about his kaleidoscopic free fall into the harrowing world of drug addiction... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
User Reviews:
Very scary and realistic movie. As real as it gets. more (129 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Leonardo DiCaprio ... Jim Carroll

Lorraine Bracco ... Jim's Mother
Marilyn Sokol ... Chanting Woman

James Madio ... Pedro
Patrick McGaw ... Neutron

Mark Wahlberg ... Mickey
Roy Cooper ... Father McNulty

Vincent Pastore ... Construction Worker (as Vinnie Pastore)

Bruno Kirby ... Swifty
Jimmy Papiris ... Iggy
Nick Gaetani ... Referee #1

Alexander Chaplin ... Bobo (as Alexander Gaberman)
Ben Jorgensen ... Tommy
Josh Mostel ... Counterman

Juliette Lewis ... Diane Moody
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Streets of New York (International: English title) (video title)
more
MPAA:
Rated R for graphic depiction of drug addiction with related strong violence,sexuality and language.
Runtime:
102 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Australia:MA (cable rating) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A (British Columbia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia) | Portugal:M/16 | Finland:K-15 (video rating) | New Zealand:R16 | Canada:14A (DVD rating) | Australia:R | Germany:12 (bw) | Norway:15 | Singapore:R(A) | South Korea:(Banned) (original rating) | South Korea:18 (re-rating) (cut) | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (NO. 33624) | Iceland:16

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Stephen Lang was offered the role of Jim's Basketball Coach named Swifty in the script. Lang declined citing the misrepresentation of the book in the script. The part was subsequently toned down as a result. more
Goofs:
Crew or equipment visible: In the "dream" scene, when Jim is shooting his classmates, the one who gets shot in the back has a visible string attached to him which pulls him to the blackboard. When Jim has a vision on the basketball court and gets blown by explosion, the string is visible again. They were dream sequences, but it seems unlikely that he would dream of strings. more
Quotes:
Jim Carroll: I saw this girl next to me who wasn't beautiful until she smiled. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in The Butterfly Effect (2004) more
Soundtrack:
Dizzy more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
31 out of 33 people found the following review useful.
Very scary and realistic movie. As real as it gets., 3 August 2006
10/10
Author: bobi1369 from United States

Beings that this was Leonardo's first leading role, he was very impressive as Jim Carroll. The movie also stars Lorraine Bracco, Marc Wahlberg, James Madio and Patrick McGaw as his mother and sidekicks respectfully. As an ex-addict myself, I could relate to his story and everything he went through. The movie was so real it brought up a lot of old memories that I thought I had forgotten. I wish every young person was made to see this movie as it takes the fun and games out of even recreational drug use. Not even the strong survive. I give it two thumbs way up and my sincere thanks to Jim Carroll for fighting off his demons to write "The Baasketball Diaries".

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more (129 total)

Message Boards

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
waste of time CoReeYe
Would people pay to 'give' someone a blowjob? Mcice88
Wonder wot happened to Pedro meakins8
First watched this at 14 years old, however don't approve LizPhoenixNikita
Ivory Snow baby? nina_beretta
Christiane F vs The Basketball Diaries user-19886
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